MY POST-CHRISTMAS TOY POST mentioned the limited appeal of the Flava dolls’ Liam, whose excessive metrosexuality got him dubbed a “girly boy” by one of my daughter’s friends. Back at the mall today, I managed to snap a picture of one of the (many) remaining Liam dolls at Kaybee Toys, so you can judge for yourself.

A couple of readers named Liam emailed to protest that they were quite manly, and to stress that Liam-the-Flava isn’t representative of Liamhood in general.

I certainly won’t argue. I don’t know exactly what Liam is supposed to represent, but it’s hard to imagine him having a lot of appeal in today’s world. And judging by available anecdotal evidence, he’s striking out on a number of different fronts, jaunty “man-purse” notwithstanding.

The Flava dolls, at any rate, are a poor attempt to match the unbeatable (in my house) Bratz line. And although the Bratz Boyz aren’t exactly oozing testosterone, they’ve got Liam beat. And that’s apparently the general rule, as Bratz are beating out not only the Flavas, but even the more-polished Barbie competition, called My Scene. Not a lot of testosterone there, either — but at least an absence of man-purses, and better clothes.

Yeah, toyblogging isn’t the usual thing here, but it’s a longstanding item going all the way back to this post from October of 2001, which even made Best of the Web. Hey, they say to write what you know. . . .

UPDATE: A reader suggests that it’s interesting to compare Liam with this action figure: Heather, from the 1st ID. Yes, it is. Meanwhile reader John Allore emails that Ken was the trailblazer when it comes to metrosexuality, and sends this link to Ken in a stunning tribute to Siegfried and Roy. But, you know, it’s okay to be in touch with your feminine side. [Hey, look! They’re having a cookware clearance at Amazon! — Ed. Like I said. . . .]